


Looks Like Nice Weather

by Christian_at_No



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Akaashi is a good mom, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arranged Marriage, BokuAka Friendship, Bokuto's son is musically inclined, Children, Comatose Tsukishima, Eventual Happy Ending, Everyone Has Issues, F/M, Fem Tsukki, Getting Back Together, Getting Together, Happy Ending, He's married oh no, I swear, I'm Bad At Summaries, I'm Sorry, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Kinda, Low-Key Adultery, M/M, Minor Character Death, Moral Ambiguity, More like an ambiguous ending, Oops, Past Relationship(s), Podfic Available, Relationship Issues, Slash, Some of this is actually pretty vague, The end game is BoKuroo, The kids are adopted, They break before they put themselves back together, They cry a bit, This was darker than I was expecting, Unfortunate Implications, Unhappy marriage, Well - Freeform, dark themes, fem akaashi, he's so broken, it's bittersweet, it's only mentioned, my bad - Freeform, relationships, they're gay, with the exception of Nao
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-15
Updated: 2018-06-15
Packaged: 2019-05-23 13:56:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14935583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Christian_at_No/pseuds/Christian_at_No
Summary: He's loved Kuroo for so long, it's a wonder that he ever tried to love anyone else. Throughout their lives, they had their eyes on each other -- even when they were barred by reality.A loveless marriage, a flawed romance, a devastating coma, and one decision that would bring them back full circle.





	Looks Like Nice Weather

**Author's Note:**

> This took longer than expected, but it's done. Who knows? Maybe there will be an epilogue, because this was a nice one to write.  
> -Chris

**I**

My eyes opened to yet another uneventful morning, the snoring next to me indicating that my “girlfriend” was still far from joining me in the land of the aware; not that I minded the brief peace that came of the fact, but it would be nice if _she_ was the one to wake up before noon for once. That being said, I sat up, briefly seeing white and worrying for my blood pressure, only to stand on unsteady legs to prepare breakfast for the beast still asleep down the hall, likely to awaken in mere moments.

When I managed to shuffle into the kitchen, the first thing I did was begin making my life-saving brew, the caffeine bound to wake me the rest of the way for the long day to come. I pondered on when I was supposed to go into work today as I retrieved the eggs from the fridge, only vaguely registering the fact that we were almost out of orange juice. Of course my son decided to emerge from his room as soon as I cracked the first egg into the pan.

“Mornin’ Dad,” he sighed out, obviously still tired.

I glanced at his approaching form, not very surprised to see his face morphed into a gargantuan yawn, only solidifying my initial hypothesis. “Long night, Mister Music Man?” I asked, every intention of teasing the young man running through my mind.

The response I got was the ever so classic eye roll, something he’d perfected over the years, followed by his forehead colliding with my back. Recognising the gesture as one of his silent requests for comfort, I left the egg to pop away for a moment while he took a steadying breath.

“You okay,Nao?”

“I got an offer.”

I blinked, at a loss. “Isn’t that a good thing? The opportunity of getting signed?” I wondered, plating the first egg. “You should be happy, right?”

I felt him shrug against me. “I guess, but I’m not… The others seem really excited, though.”

Sighing, I cracked another egg into the pan. “Well, did you talk to them about it? I’m sure Oikawa and Kageyama would understand if you just told them why you don’t feel up to it.”

“Oikawa? Maybe -- after some dramatics, of course,” he said with a chuckle at the mention of the flamboyant young man, of whom I had the pleasure of meeting two years prior.

At first, I thought what any reasonable man with working eyes would: Oikawa is gay; apparently, he’s just a thespian that angrily plays the drums and has an inner diva that comes out to play sometimes, but, and I quote, “that doesn’t mean he likes dick”.

“You don’t think Kags would,” I added, not really meaning it as a question.

He shrugged and straightened, leaning on the counter next to me, his gaze briefly meeting the overhead light. “I don’t know.”

Giving his shoulder a hopefully reassuring pat, I returned my attention to the eggs. “You’re a smart kid, you’ll think of something,” I told him.

Smiling, he looked at the egg carton. “Where’s the bacon?” he squawked, like I had done him an injustice.

“Where it usually is. Could you get it for me?” I asked, hearing the soft beep of the coffee maker as I spoke. “And would you please pour me a cup of coffee?”

“Sure deal, Dad.”

Our morning was very routine after that. We sat in the cluttered dining room at our two-seater table, he checked his messages while he ate, wiping his greasy fingers on his nightshirt, and I was checking my emails on the laptop in front of me. Finishing our meals, we slurped our coffee, exchanging brief words on the previous day, then we went our separate ways, the both of us needing to prepare for work.

I left the house first, shouting that I would see him later during my lunch break, undoubtedly waking the sleeping being in my room.

_Good luck, Naoko._

* * *

 

I placed a heavy stack of request forms on my coworker’s desk, the sound jostling him awake from his nap.

“You’re doing it again,” I observed, earning an evil look.

He straightened his tie and fixed his sleeves, letting out a dramatic sigh as he did so. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t lie, Kuroo,” I scoffed. “I know you better than that.”

“Shut up, Bo,” he muttered, carding his fingers through his permanent bedhead. “How’s your hag?” he almost spat.

“Partying and freeloading,” I grumbled.

He huffed, leaning back in his chair and grabbing the first paper from the stack I’d presented him with. “Break up with her.”

“I did.”

His look turned to one of disbelief, his lips pursing slightly. “Why’s she still around then?”

“She was too drunk to remember,” I said, walking away.

“What?” he blurted. “Wait, dude, what?!” he called after me, leaning forward in his seat.

I remembered it very vividly, actually -- though I would prefer to forget the experience.

 

 _She walked through the front door with someone that I didn’t recognise, their arm wrapped around her waist and their face buried in her neck; the duo’s soft giggles floated through the house, alerting me to their arrival. I noticed the way she looked at them -- I assumed the stranger was a man, but my attention was focussed on_ her _\-- lust was in her gaze. Something cold went up my spine and I shivered at the heavy implications the scene brought forth._

_I had cleared my throat, squaring my shoulders and glaring at the woman I had allowed to live with me for nearly three years, not that she’d noticed my presence at that point, but her companion for the night had and the look on his face was that of surprise._

_“Who’s this dude?”_

_Upon hearing the question, her fogged over eyes met my form and she tried to stand in  those impossibly high heels of hers, placing her hand on the stranger’s shoulder to steady her drunken self. “Hey, baby,” she’d began, not seeing our visitor’s expression twist in discomfort. “I didn’t think you’d be home...yet...”_

_“At three in the morning, Suzu?” I’d growled at her. “Get. Out,” I spat at her living support beam._

_He flinched at that, not seeming to fully understand the gravity of the situation about to unfold before his eyes, but Suzuki was beginning to. I could see it in her eyes that she was terrified, that somewhere in her drunken stupor she was fearing the outcome of her decisions, somewhere in her fogged up mind she had a feeling about what I was going to say._

_“Kou-”_

_“What are you still doing in my house?!” I yelled again, ignoring her in favor of the man intruding upon my space. “Get out!”_

_He blinked at my rage, realization dawning upon his slow mind as he backed away and out the front door of the apartment. She swayed in his absence, likely to regret her little expedition in the morning, and I would not pity her._

_“Kou, why are you so mad-”_

_My glare was on her once again and she fell silent immediately. “What do you think you’re doing, huh? Who do you think you are?” I hissed. “After all I’ve done for you, after all I’ve gone through for you… I just can’t do it anymore.”_

_A tiny smile curved her lips, a disbelieving breath escaping her. “Can’t_ what _anymore? What’s the_ it _? I don’t… understand...”_

_My hand had met my forehead in exhaustion. “The stress you put me under isn’t worth it. Not for this one-sided relationship. I’m so sick of your freeloading and your endless partying and your drinking…! You can’t stop, and I have tried so many times to help you -- I offered to pay for you to see someone that you could talk to, I’ve tried… and now look where it’s gotten us!”_

_“One-sided...” she whimpered. “No! Wait, no, I can stop, please give me another chance!” she’d begged, leaning forward and losing her balance, catching herself on the wall next to her before she could faceplant._

_“I’ve given you too many chances,” I told her, reaching out to help her up one last time. “This isn’t…_ we’re _not gonna work out. I don’t think we ever really did.”_

_Looking like I had destroyed her world, she stared at my hand but didn’t take it, so I retracted the appendage._

_“Okay,” she sniffed. “Okay...”_

 

She had been blackout drunk again and didn’t remember a thing, so it had been back to business as usual, much to my displeasure, but I couldn’t bring myself to remind her of our interaction the night before and see her devastated face all over again.

Yet it had to be done eventually.

A hand gripped my shoulder rather gently, but surprised me all the same; I almost flinched at the contact.

“Kuroo.” I blinked. “What is it?”

He gave me a pointed look, clearly not going to let me be unless he got the explanation that he wanted out of me.

“You can’t leave me like that, bro,” he reasoned. “It doesn’t work that way.”

I wanted to roll my eyes at this man of whom I called my best friend, his tendency to show his concern pleasant, but not always desired in my case.

“If I tell you, will you leave me alone?”

He met my dissatisfied gaze, a smirk creeping on his face. “For today.”

 

“So you still haven’t told her that your thing… isn’t a thing anymore?” he asked, looking into the surface of his coffee before glancing my way from his seat in one of the break room chairs. “Good job, Brighteyes.”

I visibly stiffened at the old nickname and I could feel a subtle heat creeping up my neck.

“Haven’t heard that one in a while...” I muttered.

My current company hummed in agreement, running a finger over his paper coffee cup with a far away look in his eye. “Almost nine years now,” he recalled. “Do you miss it?”

Hesitantly, I looked up to meet his almost sad gaze. “Yeah, sometimes. I probably think about it more than I should,” I replied. “...What about you?”

A dark chuckle escaped him upon hearing the question, but the reply was almost instantaneous, as if he’d been pondering the answer to a question he thought would inevitably come, “Everyday. With every fiber of my being.”

Breaths of laughter escaped me. “Don’t let your wife hear you.”

“Very funny,” he groaned. “But I don’t think she can hear me.”

* * *

 

I collapsed on the sofa, head buzzing. Kuroo had brought up the past, intentionally or not; with the man’s mentality, it was hard to tell. Nao wasn’t far behind me, the sound of the front door opening alerting me to his presence. The house was quiet, the two of us not saying a word, even when he flopped down beside me. A tired look dragged down his features, but a smile still managed to cling to the corners of his mouth when he turned to face me.

I quirked a brow at that, his huff and head shake all I needed to know: something was wrong.

“What?” I offered, giving the boy an easy in.

He sighed, side-eyeing me. “She came by today.”

“Who?”

His gaze slid to the back hallway, indicating the _she_ he spoke of. Confusion, among other things, took root.

“What did she want?”

He shrugged in response. “Nothing important, I guess. She walked in, saw me, and walked out again… It bothered me. All day, y’know?”

Sitting up straight, I offered a hum. _What was she up to?_ “She avoided you?”

“Seemed like it. Don’t know why, though… I mean, it’s kind of hard to do when we live together,” he muttered. “I would know.”

“Nao...” I sighed.

“What? I’m allowed to _not_ like her. She’s your girlfriend,” he defended.

I glared at nothing in particular. “No.”

He quirked an eyebrow, an echo of myself etched on his face.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” I clarified.

His white brows shot up and his blue eyes went wide. “Since when?”

“About a month ago.”

“Then why’s she still around?” he nearly spat, getting annoyed.

“She forgot.”

Silence.

“ _What?_ ”

 

**II**

The wall clock in the break room read eleven twenty-five as I watched the steam rise from my coffee. My friend sat at the table behind me in silence, a silver ring on the table in front of him. He was facing his own problems, a concept I often found hard to grasp and a truth too often forgotten. Always the strong one, always there for me, the support beam that never wavered. Sometimes it was easy to forget that he was human; a man who faced problems not unlike anyone else, though his problems would make those of most others seem trivial by comparison.

Tsukishima was gorgeous, that much I remember. She had molton brown eyes and honey hued locks that looked unbelievably soft, stubborn as an ox, though… Not that I could ever complain about her, I never spent that much time with the woman, but neither did Kuroo. That’s why the wedding surprised me.

They didn’t know each other particularly well, in fact, one could barely recall the other’s favorite color. It worried me and I felt…inferior. He’d left me and not even a full year later, he asked me to be his best man and I couldn’t say no. Then yesterday, he brought up these feelings again and…

“Stop thinking so loud, Kou...”

I startled at that, not expecting the sudden attempt at conversation. “S-sorry,” I muttered, looking over my shoulder at the ring, the thing that killed me subconsciously for eight years. “How is she?”

“I don’t know.”

Nodding, I turned and stood behind him, just being that one constant thing in his life; always in the background, behind him...like always…

“Are you okay?” I asked, voice sounding hoarse.

His head fell into his hands, a picture of helplessness, and he shook his head. “I haven’t been okay for damn near _nine years_ , babe...” he whimpered. “I’m falling apart.”

“Tetsuro,” I whispered, setting down my coffee cup and gently wrapping my arms around his shoulders, hoping it was comfort enough. “When did you see her last?”

“...Two months ago… She looked dead already. If they did it now, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference,” he spat.

The car accident had changed things. Tetsuro had come to me in tears and confessed to everything and yet nothing. How could you confess your wrongs if you did nothing wrong to begin with?

 

_“Kuroo?”_

_He stood there with tears blurring his vision, my name falling from his lips like a prayer, “Koutaro… Koutaro… Kou...”_

_Panic flooded into my system and years of instinct took over, remembering what I would do the nights we were together after our fights. I pulled him inside and held him close, he shivered in my grip and I felt my heart stop._

_“I’m sorry,” he declared. “I’m s-so sorry…!”_

_Slowly, I led him to the couch. “Shh, you’re fine… I’m here. What happened?”_

_He fell strangely silent. “...Everything… I… I regret everything...” he whispered. “I miss you so much… You were the best thing to ever h-happen to me, Bo, and I-” his voice broke ”-I left you...”_

_Silence, yet again._

_My heart was pounding, shattering, aching...so I just held him close and reminded myself of the ring on his finger._

_“I didn’t marry her out of love...” he breathed, and my breath caught._

_“...What?”_

_He met my eyes, a heartbroken look on his face. “Her parents and mine arranged it for us. I had n-no idea...but she did...and I was scared of losing you when I found out, so I left… I didn’t want to get hurt, but... I wanted to marry you, Kou… I still do.” He buried his face into my neck and let out a stuttering breath. “Even if I can’t do that, I still need you… Don’t l-leave me, Bo… I can’t lose anyone else today...”_

_“Tetsuro, what-?”_

_“Tsukki got into an accident,” he explained, effectively cutting me off. “Please… I need you right now, babe.”_

_I pulled him closer, his face still hidden in the crook of my neck as he sobbed silently. “I’m not going anywhere...”_

 

“It’s okay, Kitten. I’m not going anywhere...” I whispered. “You care about her...”

He scoffed, an empty sound. “Not the way my parents wanted me to,” he grumbled. Then, louder and with more meaning behind it, “Not the way I love you.”

Hesitant, and with an aching heart, I pressed a kiss to his temple, and I almost fell apart when he shuddered.

“...We could elope...” he muttered, darkly.

“I don’t think that would go over well,” I whimpered, holding back tears.

“We could try,” he offered.

I shook my head, a lone tear escaping me. “I love you, too. Just remember that...”

His breath hitched. “I know. I know...”

Seconds turned to minutes, and we simply sat together, his head on my shoulder. Guilt twisted in my gut at the thought of the unaware woman laying in a bed at the Tokyo hospital. The one time I had been brave enough to visit her, I was with Kuroo. He was detached, face expressionless as he took in her unconcious form with his dead gaze. Their kids had been left at the house that day with my son per Kuroo’s request as he was very adamant they not see her in such a state. When we had arrived at her room, I understood why. She was deathly pale, her eyes sunken in and her cheeks hollow, and tubes snaked from her arms and mouth. Tsukishima looked so frail…and so dead. The sight was one that filled me with dread.

Kuroo sat up, derailing my train of thought. “...Sorry,” he muttered, eyes downcast. “It’s just been a lot to handle recently...”

I sighed and rested my hand on his shoulder. “Wanna talk about it?”

He let out a bitter sounding laugh. “You really wanna listen to me?”

My brows furrowed at his tone and I gave him a very blatant Dad Look. “I’m gonna hit you if you ever say something so stupid ever again.”

A smile split his face, weak, but a smile all the same, though it was quick to leave just as fast as it came. “I don’t have the money to keep up with her medical bills anymore. I’m in debt and the bank… _They sent me a notice._ So, I’m at a loss. I don’t know what to do about the kids, either,” he sighed. “Natsu saw a picture of Tsukki and asked who she was.”

When the Tsukishima's pressured their daughter into having a child with Kuroo so that the “family legacy” could continue, she had convinced Kuroo to adopt in order to appease them. The couple had gotten the Hinata siblings as a result, a boy and a girl, Shouyo and Natsu respectively. Shouyo had been five when Kei got into her coma-inducing car accident, little Natsu being only two at the time. In the two years since then, I had taken a liking to the children, finding myself in the broken household all the more often, to the point where they referred to Naoko as their _onii-chan_ . Needless to say that the thought of either child forgetting the woman who raised them was a sad one, but I couldn’t bring myself to decide if it was inherently _bad_ given the less than ideal situation. After all, it was only a matter of time before she passed and, if it were me, I would not wish for such a memory that would stay with me throughout my childhood.

I drew a breath and frowned, biting my lip to stop myself from being an idiot. “I...I don’t know what to say...”

His sad brown eyes floated my way and met my own golden gaze. “I find that hard to believe. You can say it, Bo, I won’t mind...”

Sighing, I straightened myself in my seat, “Maybe that’s the best thing for her.” He leaned back and I continued, with a nagging feeling that I was digging a bit of a hole for myself, “If she doesn’t remember…wouldn’t that be better for the short term? You could always tell her later on, when she would have a better grasp on things. I don’t know if she would be able to handle it if she knew exactly what was going on, let alone understand...” My voice had trailed off towards the end, getting quieter the longer I spoke and shakier when I noticed the lack of response in Kuroo.

In the following silence, his hollow laugh seemed louder than it really was. “Maybe you’re right. I just don’t want her to forget her mom, I guess.”

“You _guess?_ ”

“No...” he shook his head. “No, wait, I mean... There’s no guessing. No one should just be forgotten like that. I’m just so tired, Babe. Everything I say is turning into word vomit and my brain is mush.”

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “And, hey, you know I’ll always be here for you, right?”

His voice was soft, almost vulnerable, “I know… I know...”

* * *

 

My phone rang a few times in the dead of the night, waking me from my slumber on the couch.

“ _Hello…?_ ” I managed, voice rough from sleep.

“ _Bokuto-san, I’m sorry. I often forget the time difference_ ,” a female voice apologized.

I smiled, wiping the sleep from my eyes and swiping my deflated hair from my face. “Akaashi! No, it’s nice to hear from you. It’s been awhile. How’s business?” I asked, checking the wall clock and holding back a groan at the fact that it was barely tree in the morning.

“ _Business is doing well, as am I, thanks for asking. In fact, I’ve been able to reserve some money for a trip back to japan to see Naoko_ ,” she admitted, almost sounding shy. “ _How is he?_ ”

I sat up and attempted to fix the crick in my neck with a sigh. “He’s doing well. I’ve managed to keep him alive,” I joked. “His band seems to be doing well, though he doesn’t seem too excited about getting signed anytime soon so you may want to tread lightly on that the next time you get the chance to call him.”

Akaashi hummed on the other end, “ _Duly noted, Bokuto-san. And how are you fairing?_ ”

“I could be doing better, but I’ll manage. I’ve got along just fine so far, right?” I replied, hoping I sounded easier than I felt at the moment.

Apparently I didn’t.

“ _Bokuto-san… Is it Kuroo-san?_ ”

A laugh escaped me, though it was anything but joyful. “You know me too well,” I muttered.

“ _I’d hope so. We did have a child together, after all_ ,” she managed with a little chuckle of her own, dry as it was. “ _I don’t have to commit murder, do I, Bokuto-san? I’d hate to be a hypocrite._ ”

“Ugh, lawyers,” I groaned in a teasing manner. “No murder necessary, though. Promise.”

“ _What’s wrong?_ ”

She was always so persistent. “The usual, I guess. You know how I am,” I sighed out. “I always seem to want what I can’t have.” The last bit came out in a mutter and was met with silence on the other end of the phone.

Then, “ _I’ll be there tomorrow. I just reserved the hotel._ ”

“Akaashi...” I groaned, not sure if I was exactly grateful for the woman or not. “What about your clients? You can’t just drop everything and come here-”

“ _Actually, I can, Bokuto-san. Luckily, that is one of the perks of running my own business. That and the fact that I am well overdue for a little bit of vacation time. My assistant already says that I overwork myself as it is,_ ” she continued. “ _I’m sure that she wouldn’t mind taking over for a week or so while I take a much needed break._ ”

I actually laughed at that. “See you tomorrow, Akaa.”

“ _Tell Nao I love him, would you?_ ”

“Of course.”

* * *

 

Suzuki was a nice girl once upon a time; smart, caring, happy, everything I could’ve asked for in a woman, really. But then the years started going by and she started to show sides of herself that I could have never imagined existed; drugs, binge drinking, clubbing, just losing herself. When she was sober, she was so different. She was still so sweet, but that didn’t erase the things she did when she was drunk or high. Needless to say that it was taking its toll on our relationship, and the last straw was when she brought home that man weeks ago.

The problem was that it had happened _weeks ago._

I had decided to take the day off of work in order to pick up Akaashi for her visit and catch up, maybe help get her settled, and I managed to work up enough courage in order to kill two birds with one stone. My morning was an early one as a result. Naoko was off to work, and I remained at home, stewing over a cup of coffee, barely touching it at all -- something alarming in and of itself -- until Suzuki rose for the day. She was one to be heard before she was seen, the _pit-pattering_ of her feet across the cool tile of the hallway prominent in the quiet of the late morning hours. When she came into my line of sight, her mouth was stretched wide in a yawn, hair a mess, shirt backwards and night pants hanging low.

“Mornin’, Kou,” she managed in a sleep riddled voice, my lack of response going unnoticed. “‘M surprised that you’re still here. You don’t have work?” Then, tacked on in the most thoughtless of manners, “...Or something dumb like that?”

Holding back a gargantuan sigh in an attempt to hide my morning irritability, I turned to her with the most serious look I could muster. “We need to talk.”

Her body froze, like she knew what was to come, expecting the worst outcome. “Oh…?” she whimpered, eyes going wide and brows furrowing, her face somewhere between confusion and shocked awareness.

I eyed he white knuckled grip on the kitchen counter warily, wondering if her current sobriety would lead to a vastly different reaction than the last time we had been in this situation. “Get your coffee and come sit down,” I stated, making my way to the couch, leaving my own mug in the kitchen.

She reached out and snatched my arm. “No!” she cried, looking at nothing in particular with a gaze tinted with desperation. “No… We’ll talk here. _Right here_ , before I have a breakdown.”

I brushed her hand off of my arm with a heavy sigh. “Fine. If that’s what you wanna do.”

A shaky breath left her in a rush and she ran her hands down her face, the result being a flushed mess. “You want… Oh, god, I knew this was coming,” she murmured with a huff of sad laughter, her gaze slipping up to meet mine. “ _The break-up talk._ ” I only nodded. Her elbows found purchase on the counter, her entire body quivering with restrained emotion. “...I thought it was just a dream...” she breathed. “A really bad dream...”

It took a short moment for me to fully comprehend her meaning. “Two weeks ago, you remember that?” I muttered incredulously. “‘Cause you seemed pretty _blissfully unaware_ the morning after.”

She sent a fierce glare my way. “Oh, _I’m sorry_ that I didn’t want to believe that my boyfriend _broke up with me._ Must’ve been a real inconvenience.”

“Wow, sarcasm. Original,” a nearly spat, eyes thinning. “Well, sorry for the wake-up call, Princess.”

“Aren’t you just _so_ mature,” she spat back, crossing her arms in irritation as her face bled into a darker red and spread to her ears. “I can’t believe you sometimes. So childish...”

That almost made me want to laugh out of irony. “Uhm, hey, reality wants you to take a look in the mirror, _Tachibana,_ ” I mocked, stressing the syllables of her last name.

Silence.

“...I’ll be gone by tomorrow.”

* * *

 

I saw her before she saw me when I got to the airport, making it a point to run and engulf her in a hug that left her wheezing in surprise and a lack of oxygen. Brief greetings were exchanged as I snatched her bags and led her to my waiting car, asking about her flight along the way.

“Please do not forget to breathe, Bokuto-san,” she reminded in a teasing manner. “Are you feeling better since our talk?”

Though not exactly unexpected, the question still threw me off guard in the slightest. “Well...”

Akaashi gave me her trademark Mom Look, her brows furrowed and her lips set in an expectant line. “ _Bokuto-san._ ”

“I’m _fine_ , Akaashi.” She looked unconvinced. “Ugh...” I sighed. “Fine. Fine, I’ll spill all of my secrets. Happy?”

“Very.”

_This’ll be a long drive._

 

**III**

I flipped through channels, head on Kuroo’s lap as the lot of us lazed about on a Sunday afternoon. Natsu, the little darling, had curled up on my chest while Shouyo sat on top of my legs, the limbs going numb from his weight after the hour he’d been camped there. Kuroo’s fingers idly ran through my hair as I channel surfed, the sensation lulling me into the sweet calm that often came along with his presence, and the scene was what I had longed for in years’ past. I’d often found myself in similar situations in Nao’s early years, the three of us huddled on the almost-too-small sofa in the afternoons, my son nestled between the two of us. They were times that I often missed, though the sensation of loss was often cured by moments such as the ones I shared with Kuroo and his children presently, as sad as such a thing likely seems and as temporary a fix it may be.

“There’s nothing good on,” I grumbled, poking Kuroo’s arm with the remote, to which he simply hummed. “Any ideas?” I tried again, and again I received no true response from the unusually quiet man. “Kuroo?” I asked, worry lacing my voice as I reached up to stroke his face in an attempt to get his attention.

He blinked, looking down to meet my gaze and using his thumb to smooth the worry lines that sat on my forehead with a smile that was nothing but fond, though it did little to lessen the worry I felt in my gut.

“You okay?” I asked.

His gaze drifted to the children before he met my eyes again with a pointed look, to which I waved the remote in Shouyo’s face and told him to pick something appropriate for both him and his sister to watch. Both children literally jumped at the offer, thereby releasing me from their dead weight. Cringing at the feeling of needles crawling up my legs, I stood and offered my hand for Kuroo to take, leading him to the back yard and sitting him in the grass.

“Spill,” I commanded, laying in the grass next to him.

“I signed the papers to let her go,” he stated, watching the clouds slowly drift by overhead. “They’re calling it on Monday of next week, and that’ll be the end of it.”

The familiar feel of guilt began to swirl in my gut, but I held it at bay the best I could. “ _Oh..._ ” I began, at a genuine loss. “I’m sorry, Tetsuro.”

He shook his head, the smallest of smiles on his face. “Don’t be. This is better than seeing her become little more than a living corpse,” he reasoned. “Besides, I have you to help me get by,” he whispered, reaching out to hold my hand in a soft grasp.

I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “...Yeah.”

We sat in silence for a few long minutes until the silence was broken by the sound of screaming children emerging from the house and attacking us from behind, much to our surprise. Cries of joy erupted into the air as things slowly turned into a tickle fight, everyone ganging up on Kuroo, the man being reduced to a crying heap on the floor. The sight made my chest warm with adoration, my heart skipping when I caught sight of Kuroo’s flushed face, his features twisted in laughter.

Never in my life have I loved someone quite as dearly.


End file.
